Sleep to Dream Her
by zelda49
Summary: EC Fourth in the "Dream" series but can also be read independently. After a tough case, Eric finds solace in a hot shower, his favorite pajamas, and a daydream.


A/N: Something a little more subdued for you in this daydream, but still sweet I think. If you haven't read the others in this "Dream" series, feel free to do so in whatever order you want, or not to read them at all. This one is related to those, but still independent of them, so no prior knowledge is required. Enjoy :-)

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Eric arrived home in the wee small hours of the morning, his heart breaking a little more with every step as he moved around his condo. It had been an especially difficult shift, with a long, arduous case involving a child, and those were always the worst. And, as if the day, the case, hadn't been bad enough, it was compounded by the fact that this particular child didn't survive.

He stripped off his clothes and stepped into the scalding shower, hoping that somehow the steaming water might help wash away the tragedy of the day, but all the while knowing it wouldn't. He tried it anyway, standing underneath the hot spray for several minutes, just letting the water roll down his body until he could no longer feel the heat from it. Toweling off and pulling on a favorite pair of pajama pants, he moved into the bedroom and yanked back the covers on the bed, turning the stereo on something soft and soothing before dropping onto the mattress.

There had been only one bright spot during the day, one sliver of happiness for him to hold onto in the wake of such a terrible case. There was Calleigh, the sunshine in his life, finding him in the locker room to make sure he was alright, squeezing his shoulder affectionately and running her hand over his arm with all the comfort she could offer. She had trained her piercing green eyes on him, looking into his soul the way only she could. "You call me if you need me, okay?"

He knew that he would, but not in the way that she was expecting. Pulling the sheet up over his body, he grabbed a pillow and pulled it against him, burying his face in the soft material. In his mind's eye he could see Calleigh standing in front of him, concern written all over her face. He felt her hand on his arm, felt the warmth of her skin through the thinness of his sleeve.

Closing his eyes, he allowed his thoughts to drift away.

_He could hear her moving around in the bathroom just across the hall, hear the sound of running water as she brushed her teeth, hear the drawer opening when she took out an elastic tie for her hair. She entered the bedroom quietly, the light cotton of her pajama pants whispering against the floor as she walked to the closet before making her way over to the bed._

_He felt the mattress dip when she sat down, then a slight draft when she lifted the sheet and climbed underneath, pulling it up around her shoulders as she lay down beside him. Her fingers were cold sliding over his back, drawing warmth from him when they reached the skin at the nape of his neck and combed through his stubbly hair. Her lips followed, tender and loving as they duplicated the trail._

_He moaned softly, turning over to face her with a gentle smile. "Hey."_

"_Hey," she answered in her delicate southern draw, her hand slipping to his cheek. "I wasn't sure if you were still awake."_

_He wrapped his fingers around hers and brought them to his mouth, leaving a kiss on them before clasping them against his chest. "So far."_

"_Good." She drew closer to him, mirroring his smile when his arm encircled her waist. "I like listening to you fall asleep."_

"_I like falling asleep with you," he returned, releasing her hand to hold her in both arms. He could feel her breath on his collarbone as she rested her head in the crook of his neck and his smile grew. "In fact, I can't fall asleep without you."_

"_Is that so?" she asked, her eyes twinkling._

"_Yes," he told her, kissing her hair. "Especially after a day like today."_

_Her tone became serious when she replied. "Yeah." She snuggled even closer to him, playing absently with the material of his undershirt. "I know I wouldn't be sleeping a wink tonight if I wasn't here with you. I might not sleep much anyway."_

"_I know," he agreed, his fingers tracing up and down the small of her back. "I can't get the image out of my head of that little boy laying on Alexx's table. He was so small…"_

"_Much too young to have been there," she added sadly._

"_And there wasn't a single thing we could do to save him."_

_The hardness in his voice stuck her, and she pulled back enough to look into his brown eyes. "But we got his killer," she reminded him, resting her palm against his face. "We may not have been able to prevent his death, but we put away a violent criminal today, Eric. That's something."_

_He studied her for a long moment, taking in her earnest eyes, her hopeful expression, her slender body so comfortable in his bed. Turning into her palm, he kissed her hand and smiled softly. "Thanks."_

"_For what?" she asked with genuine surprise._

"_For being here," he told her simply. "For understanding the job, for reminding me about the good we do even when it doesn't feel like enough."_

_She leaned in and found his lips with hers in a loving kiss before resuming her place in his arms. "Where else would I be?"_

Eric's breathing slowed, his grip on the pillow loosening as he allowed unconsciousness to take him. Images of Calleigh continued to parade through his mind, and he relaxed further knowing they would keep doing so as he slept. The last coherent thought he had was not of the murderer they had caught that day, not of the little boy they hadn't been able to save, not of Horatio's proud words spoken with a heavy heart. Nor was it of the hours and hours of work they'd put in, or the other cases where they were too late to help the victim. The last thing Eric saw before he succumbed completely to sleep was Calleigh.

And he smiled into the darkness.


End file.
